Gas in the Tank

It’s been a great last year for me and my team of fighters. A fight I often look back on is the one with Kenny Florian and Joe Lauzon last April. This was a great fight and Joe was and is a great competitor in this division. We were in Colorado at 5000 plus feet above sea level. It was a huge concern of mine and the team with the “thinner air” out there. Many a fighter and elite athlete will feel the effects of elevation, no matter what the shape he/she is in. It is no wonder why some of the best athletes in the world train and live at evaluation. The Olympic training facility for one, is out in Colorado Springs for this specific reason. At higher altitude such as this, the body has a difficultly bringing enough oxygen into the blood stream and delivering to working muscles. A term known as hypoxia. This can seriously effect how much “gas in the tank” a fighter has during a bout. Your conditioning will make or break you in any fight, at altitude, it will suck the life out of you. There are 3 ways to combat this , genetics, acclimation, and training. Genetics you are stuck with. Acclimation, get out there as early as possible. As far as training, cry in training so you laugh in battle!

Luckily, Kenny had all three going for him. His first few days of being out there 3 weeks prior to the fight, he said “I defy altitude!”. This is in part to his genes and his training. The more fit an athlete is all year round, the easier elements like this are to accommodate. This is why I stress with all my fighters and athletes, “There is No OFF SEASON!” You want to be one, then act like one, and train like one. Tom Brady trains all year long to maintain his fitness level and to be on top of his game, why shouldn’t you?

In this article you will see one of the actual workouts we use for my fight clients like Kenny Florian, Stephan Bonnar, Alex Karalexis, and Aleberto Crane. My good friend, client and Kru Mark Dellagrotte was kind be available for this shoot. Thanks to Kru Mark and the entire staff at Sityodtong.

Kevin Kearns AKA “ Dr. Evil” has been a strength and conditioning coach for over 20 years. Recently he released “ The Burn with Kearns Basement Tapes for MMA conditioning” which are receiving high praise in the MMA world. For DVD , Coaching info, and seminar info visit www.BurnWithKearns.com or contact Ron Wienberg at consenmar@hotmail.com or 508-653-7401. Kevin can be reached at Kevin@BurnwithKearns.com